Flexible hair roller

ABSTRACT

A flexible hair roller includes a flexible substrate extending longitudinally between opposing ends, having an inner planar side and an outer planar side opposite the inner planar side, a plurality of loops disposed across an entire length of the outer planar side and covering all of the outer planar side of the substrate, a plurality of hooks disposed across an entire width along one of end portions of the inner planar side of the substrate, and a tab connected to the end of the substrate where the plurality of hooks are disposed and extends laterally therefrom. The plurality of hooks from the inner planar side of the substrate are configured to engage and stick to a portion of the plurality of loops from the outer planar side of the substrate so as to transit the flexible hair roller between flattened and rolled positions.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to hair rollers, and more particularly, toflexible hair rollers designed and configured to store and/or transportin a minimal volume.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Hair rollers or curlers are used to produce a new hairstyle by rollingthem onto a person's hair. These tubular shaped hair rollers arecurrently available in various sizes to provide different sizes andstyles of curls. When styling hair, typically, a set of hair rollers(e.g., a dozen or more) is needed. However, owning and using theseconventional hair rollers has one major disadvantage. Specifically, thehair rollers occupy a lot of space and present a storage issue sincethey remain in a tubular shape even when the hair rollers are not inuse. Particularly, this can be a problem while traveling, when storagespace is limited.

Accordingly, although various hair rollers are available currently inthe market, further improvements are possible.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a flexible hairroller includes a flexible substrate extending longitudinally betweenopposing ends, the flexible substrate having an inner planar side and anouter planar side opposite the inner planar side, a plurality of loopsdisposed across an entire length of the outer planar side and coveringall of the outer planar side of the substrate, a plurality of hooksdisposed across an entire width along one of end portions of the innerplanar side of the substrate, and a tab connected to the end of thesubstrate where the plurality of hooks are disposed and extendslaterally therefrom, wherein the plurality of hooks from the innerplanar side of the substrate are configured to engage and stick to aportion of the plurality of loops from the outer planar side of thesubstrate so as to transit the flexible hair roller between flattenedand rolled positions.

These and other aspects of the present invention will be betterunderstood in view of the drawings and following detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a flexible hair roller, according to anembodiment of the present invention, in a rolled position;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the flexible hair roller in a flattenedposition;

FIG. 3 is a top view of the flexible hair roller in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the flexible hair roller in FIG. 2; and

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

According to an embodiment of the present invention, referring to FIG.1, a flexible hair roller 10 includes a substrate 12 and a tab 14connected to the substrate 12. The flexible hair roller 10 provides aclosure (attachment/detachment) mechanism, which allows the flexiblehair roller 10 to transit between rolled (FIG. 1) and flattened (FIG. 2)positions, as will be described greater detail below. Once the flexiblehair roller 10 is in the rolled position, a minimal space is requiredfor storage or while traveling.

Referring to FIG. 2, the substrate 12 is flexible and is a preferablythin elongated rectangular strip that extends longitudinally between itsopposing ends 16, 18. The substrate 12 has an inner planar side 20 andan outer planar side 22 opposite the inner planar side 20. The outerplanar side 22 of the substrate 12 engages with hair when the flexiblehair roller 10 in the rolled position (FIG. 1) is mounted in the hair.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, in the depicted embodiment, a plurality ofloops 24 are disposed across the entire length L1 of the outer planarside 22 and thus, covering all of the outer planar side 22 of thesubstrate 12. In addition, a plurality of hooks 26 are disposed on theinner planar side 20 of the substrate 12. Specifically, the plurality ofhooks 26 are positioned across the entire width W along the end portion28 of the inner planar side 20 of the substrate 12 where the tab 14 isconnected to, as shown in FIG. 4. This Velcro hook and loop fastenerarrangement is provided to facilitate the closure mechanism of theflexible hair roller 10. For example, the plurality of hooks 26 from theinner planar side 20 of the substrate 12 engage and stick to a portionof the plurality of loops 24 from the outer planar side 22 of thesubstrate 12, as illustrated in FIG. 5, thereby transitioning theflexible hair roller 10 from the flattened position to the rolledposition.

Referring again to FIG. 1, the flexible hair roller 10 in the rolledposition has a tubular shape. The plurality of loops 24 and theplurality of hooks 26 may be in any shape that allows them to interlockor stick to each other. Although the Velcro loop and hook fastenerarrangement is preferred, it will be appreciated that other forms offasteners could be used for the closure mechanism of the flexible hairroller 10.

The substrate 12 of the flexible hair roller 10 is made of one or morematerials having suitable properties for a desired application,including strength, weight, rigidity, etc. Flexible material such assoft plastic or vinyl is preferred. In addition, the material is waterresistance and thus washable. Preferred dimensions believed to besuitable for the substrate 12 includes a width of approximately 2.5inches, a length between 2.5 inches and 7.5 inches, and a thicknessbetween 0.125 inch and 0.1875 inch. The length LA of the area of thedisposed hooks 26 is preferably between 0.5 inch to 1 inch.

The plurality of hooks 26 are designed to stick with the plurality ofloops 24 upon contacting the plurality of loops 24. The plurality ofloops 24 are dimensioned and configured such that they provide adequateadherence when the hair is wound around the outer planar side 22 of thesubstrate 12. Other shapes, configurations, and dimensions could be usedas deemed suitable for the substrate 12 of the flexible hair roller 10.

Referring again to FIGS. 1-5, the tab 14 is connected to the end of thesubstrate 12 and extends laterally therefrom. Specifically, the tab 14is connected to the end of the substrate 12 where the plurality of hooks26 are disposed, as shown FIG. 4. In the depicted embodiment, the tab 14is connected to the substrate 12 by sewing; alternately, the tab 14could be integrally connected thereto or attached via some other means.

The tab 14 allows the flexible hair roller 10 to easily transit from therolled position to the flattened position. For example, when theflexible hair roller 10 is in the rolled position, the tab 14 isdisposed above the outer planar side 22 of the substrate 12, as shown inFIG. 5. Thus, a user may disengage the plurality of hooks 26 from theplurality of loops 24 by simply pulling the tab 14 away from theattached plurality of loops 24.

The tab 14 of the flexible hair roller 10 is made of one or morematerials having suitable properties for a desired application,including strength, weight, rigidity, etc. Nylon or polyester isgenerally preferred. In the depicted embodiment, the tab 14 has arectangular shape; alternatively, the tab 14 may be in any other shapedeemed suitable, such as a square or semi-circular shape. In addition,various dimensions could be used as deemed suitable for the tab 14 ofthe flexible hair roller 10.

Pictures (e.g., logos) or text (e.g., product descriptions) may beprinted on or attached to the inner planar side 20 of the substrate 12of the flexible hair roller 10, where the plurality of hooks 26 are notdisposed.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that a flexible hair rolleraccording to the present invention provides easy use for shaping hair,while reducing storage space for hair rollers.

In general, the foregoing description is provided for exemplary andillustrative purposes; the present invention is not necessarily limitedthereto. Rather, those skilled in the art will appreciate thatadditional modifications, as well as adaptations for particularcircumstances, will fall within the scope of the invention as hereinshown and described and of the claims appended hereto.

What is claimed is:
 1. A flexible hair roller comprising: a flexiblesubstrate extending longitudinally between its opposing ends, theflexible substrate having an inner planar side and an outer planar sideopposite the inner planar side; a plurality of loops disposed across anentire length of the outer planar side and covering all of the outerplanar side of the flexible substrate; a plurality of hooks disposedacross an entire width along one of end portions of the inner planarside of the flexible substrate; and a tab connected to the end of theflexible substrate where the plurality of hooks are disposed and extendslaterally therefrom; wherein the plurality of hooks from the innerplanar side of the flexible substrate are configured to engage and stickto a portion of the plurality of loops from the outer planar side of theflexible substrate so as to transit the flexible hair roller betweenflattened and rolled positions.
 2. The flexible hair roller of claim 1,wherein, when the flexible hair roller is in the rolled position, thetab is used to transit the flexible hair roller to the flattenedposition by disengaging the plurality of hooks from the plurality ofloops by pulling the tab away from the plurality of loops.
 3. Theflexible hair roller of claim 1, wherein the tab is connected to theflexible substrate by sewing.
 4. The flexible hair roller of claim 1,wherein the tab is integrally connected to the flexible substrate. 5.The flexible hair roller of claim 1, wherein the flexible substrate ismade out of flexible material such as soft plastic or vinyl.
 6. Theflexible hair roller of claim 1, wherein the flexible substrate is athin elongated rectangular strip.
 7. The flexible hair roller of claim1, wherein the flexible substrate has a width of 2.5 inches.
 8. Theflexible hair roller of claim 1, wherein the flexible substrate has alength between 2.5 inches and 7.5 inches.
 9. The flexible hair roller ofclaim 1, wherein the flexible substrate has a thickness between 0.125inch and 0.1875 inch.
 10. The flexible hair roller of claim 1, wherein alength of an area of the disposed plurality of hooks is between 0.5 inchto 1 inch.
 11. The flexible hair roller of claim 1, wherein theplurality of loops are dimensioned and configured such that they provideadequate adherence when hair is wound around the outer planar side ofthe flexible substrate.
 12. The flexible hair roller of claim 1, whereinthe tab has a rectangular shape.
 13. The flexible hair roller of claim1, wherein the tab is made out of nylon or polyester.